Prince Augustus POV
"Don't go straight to the palace. There's a place I have to go first."
"Yes, Your Highness," The chauffeur, who has been tasked with escorting me to the palace, responds to my command by taking a different route.
It's been six years since I took a plane to Luxembourg to wed Felicity, the woman who would later become my ex-wife. I haven't told anybody else about the contract because doing so is against the rules. This is why I had no choice but to get married to Felicity and then get a divorce from her after we had been married for six years. I was with Felicity for six years, and she loved me. I never developed romantic feelings for her. For the simple reason that I know, deep down, that someone is out there.
I'm holding something that Lincoln personally gave to me. There's a note with an address on it, and he told me to check it out. Because that's where my true love was, I know exactly who I'll meet there.
"Your Highness, we have arrived."
I was completely at a loss for what to do, and my entire body was shivering. I have so much to say, yet I don't even know where to begin. Could I bring myself to say the words in my mind?
I paused for a moment to catch my breath before pushing through the door.
In a wooden house, I saw my love again. The anxiety I felt caused me to tighten my fist over the paper. The instant she turned around to meet my eyes, my heart began to beat as quickly as it had before, and I found that I was becoming increasingly short of breath. How long has it been? The longer I looked at her, the more I saw a fully grown lady. She continued to blossom in attractiveness, to the point where I was unable to tear my gaze away from her.
Seeing the surprise in her eyes confirms my worries... I kept my eyes on her as she made her way toward me. She came running up and embraced me. I thought that she would, but it turned out to be the complete reverse. She did not rush to me or offer a hug. She stood there, stunned, and lowered her head just like everyone else does.
"Your Highness," Gemma addressed me with a grin. "No one has informed me that you are returning."
I told her, "I am here for the coronation," rather than "It is a surprise for you."
She nods, "Oh, yeah, of course, the coronation," as if she were waiting for me to add anything else. "It is a privilege to host you at our home, Your Highness, Prince Augustus."
The reality is very different from what I had imagined. How did we get to this point? There is an unbridgeable chasm between us.
"Gemma..."
She raised her eyes to me. I don't understand why her gaze lost its longing for me.
"Gemma, I'm here because of..."
"Mama!" A man who was carrying a child suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It is approaching us, and that fills me with dread.
"Sweetie," After cradling the infant in her arms, Gemma leaned in close to the man and lightly kissed him on the cheek. "Your Highness..." she begins sensing my shock at everything I have just witnessed. "Didn't they say anything to you?"
The excitement I had the moment I stepped foot on the land vanished, replaced with bitterness and sadness. "No, they did," I said, which was a lie. I have no idea why, but I don't want her to experience the same feelings of guilt that she had before.
"Oh, I thought they didn't tell you," she said with a breath of relief. "As you can see, I am now a mother to a beautiful little angel who has changed my life. Athena is 8 months old and has a beautiful name."
I was a little late... I felt sorry for myself. I really should have arrived home sooner. It's my fault... But do I even have any rights? I was gone for much too long, and throughout the years that I was never with her, someone else filled the void that I left behind. The past is no longer a part of Gemma's life.
"And the father of my baby," she said, pointing to the man. "Rowel."
Afterward, the man bowed as well. "Your Highness, I've heard a lot of interesting things about you."
I was completely helpless, and the most I could muster was a fake smile.
After that, Gemma gave the infant once more to the man. "How about you go in first, and I'll follow you straight?"
The man lowered his head once more and left us alone.
Everything around us goes silent, and we have no idea where to begin or how to break the unsettling silence. The awkwardness gets worse with the total lack of conversation.
"He's good," she began to praise him. "To both of us, especially to my little one. Just like you, he made sure I was okay. Both of you share something in common.
"G-- that's great to hear,"
"What about you and Felicity? How's your relationship going?"
"We've been married for six years, but after all the ups and downs, we've decided to get a divorce, and you're the first person to receive this news," I said. It's been eating me up to not be able to tell Gemma the truth about how our relationship exists only on paper. But then I came to the realization that stating all of those things wouldn't change anything. She has found happiness, and her life is no longer as chaotic as it was before.
She said, "I— I'm sorry about that," apologizing to me in a sympathetic tone.
"Don't be, because I'm not sorry," I said. "It's time for me to leave, as I have a meeting at the palace."
"Oh, right. I forgot you were the future king; for a few moments, I assumed I was speaking to Cynfael, the novel but easily angered Cynfael." A grin spread across her face. "I'll be sure to watch your coronation."
"Thank you." And with that, I gave her one final grin and went on my way.
Just as she was ready to turn around, she looked back at me. I felt myself gradually encircled by her arms, which I hadn't felt in a very long time. A touch of her lips, which I'd been dying to kiss, brushed across my cheek. "Farewell, Sebastian, from your biggest idiotic ne'er-do-well." She flashed me a grin, and then I realized she was no longer in my sight.
"Gemma continues to study, but the wedding, which was broadcast live, devastated her. But that isn't the reason she should give up hope just yet. She remembers your birthday and waits to meet you every year. Gemma's days consisted primarily of going to school and then returning home afterward. Her sole solace is to study, and she believes that this is the only thing that will sway the king's decision. Years had gone by, yet she still held out hope that you would return. Gemma was unable to move on from her past; she refused to let go of the pain you'd given her, believing that holding on to it would bring you back. That's how things work without you, Augustus." Lincoln uttered with a mournful voice.
Hearing Lincoln talk about how she has grown miserable since I left makes me want to condemn myself a hundred times over.
I reached inside my pocket and pulled out the photo they gave me two years ago. Keeping up with my inevitable fate is the one thing that has kept me going. She was smiling for the camera because, at the time, she believed that I was about to go home. As I put it back, a wry grin spread across my face, and I reflect on how often I blame fate when, in reality, it may be me who makes the ultimate decision on which path to choose in life. For the simple reason that, in the end, I get to decide my fate. Fate just led me in the direction of a decision I now deeply regret.